Our universities are places in which diversity – of people, opinions, and beliefs – can and does thrive. But we know that too many students experience harassment or sexual misconduct during their time in higher education.
Too often, students suffer prejudice, discrimination, harassment and violence on account of their race, sexual orientation, gender identity, faith or disability, or are victims of hate crime.
Our role
Our work to date to tackle harassment and sexual misconduct has broadly focused on the following areas:
- Providing a consistent set of standards through our statement of expectations to support universities and colleges to develop and implement effective systems, policies and processes to prevent and respond to incidents of harassment and sexual misconduct.
- Working with a range of partners to develop and share sector-wide effective practice, guidance and resources.
- Providing funding for higher education providers to develop practical and innovative approaches and solutions.
Our current work includes:
- A consultation on a new approach to regulating harassment and sexual misconduct in English higher education.
- A pilot survey to understand students' experiences of sexual misconduct while at university or college.
We cannot intervene in individual student cases. These should be dealt with through a provider's internal complaints processes. If a student feels that an issue is not resolved after their internal complaint has been concluded, they can refer their concerns to the Office of the Independent Adjudicator for Higher Education (OIA).
